Australian police have been granted an extra 48 hours to continue detaining an Indian doctor in connection with the suspected UK car bomb attacks.

The Australian Federal Police said the extra time granted by magistrates would allow them to consider the evidence they have gathered so far.

Dr Haneef, 27, was arrested a week ago at Brisbane airport, following a tip-off from UK police.

His home on Queensland's Gold Coast was searched for a second time on Sunday.

The doctor is related to two of the six people being held in the UK over the alleged attempted car bomb attacks on central London and Glasgow at the end of last month.

Another man, 27-year-old Iraqi doctor Bilal Abdullah, was remanded in custody by a UK court on Saturday, charged with conspiracy to cause explosions.

Searches

A police spokesman said Brisbane magistrates had decided on Monday evening to grant police an extra 48 hours of so-called dead time - which allows the interviewing to be put on hold so police can consider the evidence already gathered or pursue other lines of inquiry.

This would allow "for the analysis of material obtained during the course of the investigation by joint counter-terrorism teams", the spokesman said.

Dr Haneef has already undergone 12 hours of questioning by Australian police since he was arrested on 2 July.

Under counter-terrorism laws, police have a further 12 hours of interview time available to them - which can be spread out over a number of days.

Dr Haneef's lawyer said on Monday that his client had already undergone three days of dead time.

Mohammed Haneef was picked up at Brisbane airport, reportedly with a one-way ticket to India.

His family in India insist he is innocent, and say he was travelling home to visit his wife and newborn baby.

Since Mr Haneef's arrest, a further five Indian doctors have been questioned and released by the Australian authorities.

Police seized computers and other materials from hospitals in Western Australia at the end of last week, and carried out a second search of Dr Haneef's top-floor apartment and Honda car on Sunday.

The Australian Transaction Reports and Analysis Centre (Austrac), the country's counter-terrorism finance regulator, is now assisting the Australian federal police, scrutinising money transferred in and out of the country.